Gary Neville has hit back at Jeff Stelling's criticism of Salford City's support after the League Two promotion chasers attracted a crowd of just 2,139 for Tuesday's game with Hartlepool.
Despite the game being crucial to their play-off ambitions, the attendance was some way below Salford's Peninsula Stadium average this season of 2,800 and included 500 travelling fans from the north-east.
Hartlepool president and Soccer Saturday host Stelling tweeted: 'Did someone forget to tell fans of @SalfordCityFC there was a game? 2,139 - 500 of those from @Official_HUFC !
'Some may say they are an artificially created club. After all @officialbantams [Bradford City] get 20000. And yes I know we will probably get relegated, but support your team ffs!'
But his Sky Sports colleague and Salford co-owner Neville defended the fanbase and suggested Stelling might have been on the beers.
Posting at 4.52am, Neville wrote: 'We're quite proud to have got to a crowd of 2,139 from an average of 120 and 40 season ticket holders 7/8 years ago in the Evo-Stik North!'
Neville added 'hope the head isn't too woolly when you get up' followed by beer and wine emojis.
Responding to another tweet later on which read 'Hartlepool don't get much more week in week out…', Neville wrote 'Founded in 1908 and have crowds of 3,500.'
Hartlepool's average gate in League Two this season is 4,576, the 14th highest in the division while Salford's is the second-lowest.
The Ammies have enjoyed a quick rise through the divisions since Neville, along with his Manchester United Class of '92 team-mates Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Nicky Butt and Phil Neville, bought the club in 2014.
The billionaire Peter Lim bought a 50 per cent stake September of that year and the club rose from the Northern Premier League Division One North - the eighth tier of English football - to the EFL in the space of six years.
Now Salford are pushing for promotion into League One and their 2-0 win over Hartlepool, courtesy of goals by Matt Smith and Louie Barry, places them seventh, the final play-off spot.
However, Mansfield Town, out of the play-offs on goal difference alone, retain a game in hand on Salford.
The result pushed Stelling's Hartlepool closer to relegation down to the National League. They are 23rd of 24 sides in League Two, three points from safety with three games remaining.